Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
Former Philadelphia Eagles quarterback and current ESPN NFL analyst Ron Jaworski recently stated that San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick could go down as the greatest quarterback of all-time. His reasoning is because of how the quarterback position is evolving and that Kaepernick has head coach Jim Harbaugh by his side if not in his rear-end.
Jaworski says that Kaepernick throws down the field well and everyone is aware, mainly opponents, of his ability to run the football in the open field. Though Kaepernick could put up great statistics and possibly shatter records, he has a few things working against him, mainly offensive advantages that the NFL has imposed on the game.
NFL Hall of Famers Joe Montana and Steve Young may have played with the likes of Jerry Rice and Terrell Owens, but they did not have the advantage of the “Five-yard Rule”, where there is no contact on the perimeter after five yards from scrimmage on passing plays.
Besides, Kaepernick inherited a very talented and dominant team when Alex Smith went down with a concussion. The defense was one of the best last year; he had a sturdy offensive line and a running back whose stats were sacrificed for him to run in the open field. The 49ers would have made it to the Super Bowl with Smith because of the pieces on that team.
Can Kaepernick adjust to change and weapons not being on the field? Will he get any rings? Will he be the second unanimously voted MVP? How will he handle a losing season? How will he come back from a serious injury? Will he be able to maintain a high level of quarterback play as his athletic ability declines with age?
These are just some of the questions that Kaepernick will have to answer throughout his career to even be considered a Hall of Famer let alone just one of the all-time greats.
